Individuals who experienced sexual abuse by church officials have voiced renewed hope after their first meeting with the new Pope at the Vatican.
The board president, heading Ending Clergy Abuse, commented that the Pope's decision to engage with them so soon in his leadership spoke volumes about his dedication to tackling the problem.
Global Strict Approach Advocated
The group is advocating for a worldwide strict approach that would permanently remove any priest who confesses to or is proven of abusing a minor. This approach has already been adopted in the United States.
The Pope recognized that there is "resistance in some parts of the globe" to this initiative, according to the representative.
"Everyone was practical when we acknowledged that there is pushback," Hickey remarked.
Legacy Issue
The new Pope, who assumed the position in May, has inherited this longstanding problem that has plagued the Catholic Church for many years.
Previous efforts to address the problem included an historic meeting on paedophilia within the institution and changes to canon law to clearly outlaw sexual abuse.
Deeply Felt Connection
For Hickey, who prefers they/them pronouns, the campaign for global implementation of the measure is personal. The North American activist shared they were abused by a priest who was later moved between various churches.
"We trust this will set the tone for his leadership, because we aim to collaborate with him," they expressed. "We have the same goal, we want to end clergy abuse."
Significant Meeting
Multiple members of the coalition, which represents victims and supporters from over thirty nations, met with the Pope in his Vatican office.
The meeting, originally scheduled for a brief period, extended to a sixty minutes, during which the Pope "mostly listened to us," according to Hickey.
The Pope was characterized as "quite empathetic" when hearing the account of a woman abused at a church-run institution for native youth in Canada.
They added the leader was "tender" about their own experience and appeared "modest, humorous, and approachable."
"Survivors have consistently sought a voice in discussions and I didn't feel like he was giving us lip service," they stated. "I believed like he was sincere, practical, and very open and eager to work with us."
Church Regulations Changes
The organization is advocating that changes to church regulations will facilitate the adoption of the zero-tolerance policy worldwide.
They have consulted specialists and compiled materials that they plan to submit to the pontiff.
"He appeared interested in looking at it," they noted.
Responsibility Emphasized
A recently released Vatican-commissioned report highlighted the "necessity of a efficient process for the stepping down and/or dismissal of Church leaders or personnel in cases of abuse or failure to act."
The document also pointed out that survivors repeatedly stressed the "critical requirement for bishops and senior officials to be held accountable for negligence and concealment."
Moving Forward
Hickey revealed they informed the Pope at the beginning of their discussion: "This represents as much a risk for him to participate in a dialogue as it was for us."
Following the meeting, Hickey voiced optimism for progress.
"We realise it's not something that's going to be resolved quickly, but at the conclusion, coming together and building a connection and persisting to build that bond is a move in the correct path," they stated.
They concluded that they shared with Pope Leo: "Even though it's a dark chapter, I feel like we can change how the narrative concludes - he valued that."
